UNDERSTANDING CULTURE, SOCIETY &

POLITICS
QUARTER 1 – Week 3 OUTLINE

CULTURAL RELATIVISM, SOCIETY & POLITICS

Cultural Relativism Mitigates Ethnocentrism

(UCSP11/12DCSId-10), Q1 – 7 - Cagayan

CULTURAL RELATIVISM MITIGATES ETHNOCENTRISM

Cultural variation refers to the differences in social behaviors that different cultures
exhibit around the world. What may be considered good etiquette in one culture may be
considered bad etiquette in another. "What is unacceptable and bad in a group of people may
be good and acceptable in another group of people."

There are two important perceptions of cultural variability namely, ethnocentrism and
cultural relativism.
Ethnocentrism means judging another culture solely by the values and standards of
one’s own culture. It is the belief that your native culture is the most superior way of
understanding around the world. Individuals may have difficulty showing appreciation of other
cultures due to a lack of information about the culture.

When do we become ethnocentric?

1. When you judge the behavior and beliefs of people who are different from you
 Way out: To stop ethnocentric behavior, you must stop judging others
who are different from you.
2. When you believe that some cultures are backward if they lack the technology and
consumerism of your own culture.
 Way out: Remember that there are no primitive or backward cultures. All
cultures provide their members with the means to meet all human needs.
Have you ever seen or eaten food from other places, such as dried squid or fried
crickets, and think of it as weird and gross? This is an example of ethnocentrism! That means
you use your own culture as the center and evaluate other cultures based on it. You are judging
or making assumptions about the food of other places based on your norms, values, or beliefs.
Thinking “dried squid is smelly” or “people shouldn’t eat insects” are examples
of ethnocentrism in societies where people may not eat dried squid or insects. Can you think of
other examples where people might view practices from another culture as “wrong” or “weird”?

Cultural relativism is that a person’s beliefs and activities should be understood by

others in terms of that individual’s own culture. Cultural relativism promotes greater appreciation
of the cultures one encountered along the way. For instance, fur clothing is good in the Arctic
countries but not in tropical countries. In some cultures, food is eaten with different instruments:
hands, cutlery, chopsticks. Even the way people use these instruments can differ from culture to
culture with people using forks or spoons more regularly or for specific foods.
 Have you ever noticed that travel guide books often have information about cultural
practices and behavior that is considered disrespectful? This information is provided to develop
awareness about different practices and beliefs, in other words, to help people develop
intercultural competence.

Explain the importance of cultural relativism in attaining cultural

understanding.
(UCSP11/12DCSId-10)

 Cultural relativism is the ability to understand a culture on its own terms and not to
make judgements using the standards of one’s own culture.
 The goal of this is to promote understanding of cultural practices that are not
typically part of one’s own culture.
 Cultural Relativism is important to anthropology and one of the things that make
anthropology unique because it is a tool, a method for attempting to see things
from a municipality of viewpoints so as to better understand them.
 Cultural relativism does not mean that anything a culture does is good for moral.
This is one of the ones that confuse people.
 Cultural Relativism teaches us that, marriage patterns are culture options, not
objective truth.
 Cultural Relativism doesn’t mean that culture can’t be compared. There is
sometimes a strange notion that there are no commonalities between cultures.
 This is one of the reasons why those trained in cultural anthropology are often
great problem solvers for complex issues.